Last week on WWE Raw, John Cena made a speech clarify around the John Cena Classicthe event he previously revealed at WWE Backlash in May. While some things were indeed clarified, there still isn’t much that makes sense about the whole thing.
One of the only things that is crystal clear around the classic is its location. It is set for the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. While the event isn’t being held on Main Street at the Magic Kingdom or anything, it still gives the company the title of “WWE Hosts Event at Disney World,” and WWE’s expanded partnership with the Walt Disney Company is no laughing matter.
The date of the event, however, is a different story. Cena revealed that the Classic will take place on Monday, December 14th. Many fans expected it to be a premium live event, or at least a special like Saturday Night’s Main Event, to counter AEW Worlds End. Cena announced that two episodes of “WWE Raw” will take place on the 14th, with the first series starting soon in the US, at least from Perth, Australia, where the company will follow Wrestlepalooza that weekendand the second, presumably at his usual time, in Orlando. Two episodes of Raw in one day doesn’t make much sense because one’s ratings will likely suffer. For a company that likes to counter-program its competition, this seems like a missed opportunity.
One of the main unique factors of the John Cena Classic is that fans can vote for their favorite standout star, but voting is paid. You must be a Club WWE member ($100/year) to vote. A simple vote won’t convince large numbers of people to sign up for the service, especially in the US, where many already have to pay more for ESPN to watch WWE PLEs.
The first star announced for the event was Cody Rhodes, and many confused fans took to social media to believe the event was meant to highlight young talent. And it is, but Cena could have done a much better job of driving that point home while exposing Rhodes’ rival from “WWE NXT.”
Cena also revealed that Classic Not a Breck style tournament as many assumedbut rather, a series of exhibition matches like his retirement last December. That seems like something he could have easily addressed on Raw or NXT rather than in an interview. For something that needs to be clarified, the John Cena Classic remains a bit of a mess.
Written by Daisy Ruth
